Days on End
by SniperInTheHouse
Summary: Nobody wants to talk about the truth of XCOM. Created so the select people could kill and eliminate competition... Civilian targets. Under the guise of a forgotten UN project. Then this forgotten organization was put to the test. So many of us died and so many of us became less as human. I remembered those endless days, days that always went on as the deaths kept on counting up.
1. Milk Run

A/N

I realized that I was writing with a story like I had a prequel. This is why my XCOM was OOC I realized not because this or that, but I saw a completely different XCOM that made it to the Capital Ship. Personally it was because I lost a lot of rookies my first go around and personally blamed it on the scientist because she constantly wanted live aliens. Here is my Prequel or novel for what happened to XCOM before reaching the Mass Effect Universe.

* * *

**Location: The Suck, Heavily Contested Afganistan**

**Date: June, 6, 2012**

A voice that held authority, yet a fatherly tone to it. A voice our hero heard so many times before in encouraging, condemning and loving tones, but a voice all the same. "Bales wake up we have a op at 0600." Dante Tyler Bales slowly rose up from his cot; a tanned hand went up to run through a short buzzed patch of black hair. "Yes sir," was Bales clipped reply. Bales sat up onto the edge of his cot and then sleepily rubbed his tired eyes with his thumb and pointer finger.

Bales looked up to see Gunnery Sargent Wayne exiting his tent towards another opened tent with people surrounding a map in full kit. Bales gave a soft grunt heaving himself up to his full height standing 5'9. He grabbed his rifle leaning against the cot he slept on and started to walk to where Sargent Wayne stood grimly faced staring at a map. Bales gave out a short stretch for his arms and neck. He massaged his limbs with his left hand, his right holding his rifle. His neck sang the songs of you're an idiot for sleeping in full battle gear the "night" before arriving.

Under the tent, he saw his full fire team there, all yawning from only getting two hours of sleep. Glancing at his watch, it read 0435, causing him to scoff and mutter, "Only 3 minutes off exact..." A marine intel officer walked in, no one bothered to learn his name during his 2 years of handing out missions; it wasn't personal, just the tour here drained everyone that wanted to know someone. Especially with a 40% casualty rate, any remaining energy was wasted on tears. All bales knew was there was a golden oak leaf which caused the standard attention on deck and the same routine.

The major wasted no time briefing the fire team on the mission. "We have intel on a threat in this general location," Bales peered over the shoulder of a squad mate to see the major pointing at a warehouse; he sighed quietly, backing away already knowing the information of the briefing. It was a milk run threat. A highly unreliable source who wanted a quick buck, so they revealed a location, which is either booby trapped or abandoned days before by towel heads. Bales only stood there impassively not wondering about the curiosity of the mission.

* * *

**Two Months Prior**

**Location: Classified OP**

"Pst, Dante." "Huh?" Was all Dante managed out? Hovering above him was Kyle, his "pasty white skinned friend" as Dante called him. Blinding him as he opened his eyes, Kyle sat there scratching his head which was covered in blond hair. "Hey Dante..." Kyle paused; he begun to fiddle with his M14. If one saw this unlikely pair, an oriental and what looked like the poster child for a SS officer, sitting against a knee high wall, in full combat gear, only a chuckle would be given out. Especially to the fact his Asian counter part has his helmet covering his whole face with a lit cigarette peeking out, while two bright blue eyes stared in wonder at the bright glowing orbs in the night sky we call stars, his back straight against the wall, his head craned up.

"Dante what do you see up there?" A gloved hand slowly came up from its rested position on a M4AL lying on his chest to push his helmet back just enough for a pair of dark brown eyes to peek out, a hand to pull the cigarette out of his mouth, the right hand moving to lay out across the ground, and lips parted to softly say, "Kyle...I only see another battle field..." Kyle timothy Greene looked at his pragmatic counterpart and gave a small huff as he glanced at his neck with tender care. As he went to look at his friend, slowly and gently, a dirtied face with a grin revealed a smirk that breathed out,"Minority Dante." With his arms now crossed over his chest, cigarette still lazily held in his fingers, he muttered out beneath his helmet, "Aryan douche bag Kyle."

They cracked a large grin knowing there was more banter to come. His mind whisked away in the peace of that of the stars that danced in the sky. Meanwhile his counterpart, with a lit yet unsmoked cigarette, was plagued with the thoughts of wars waged by planets and the billions dying in these wars. It was his worst nightmare; wars that never ended and reached out into the peace that should remain pure.

* * *

Drip. Drip. Drip. The noise of rainfall. Dante had no idea how it rained in the god forsaken desert but decided to enjoy the cool feeling. He stealthily crept on his target, he was point man with Gunnery Sargent Wayne, Kyle, and a new marine called Stims, all in a staggered delta formation. In front of Dante was two Arabic males, both lazily pacing a 20ft perimeter around a door. Gunny and Stims veered off to their objective. Gunny, no doubt with some crazy idea, left Dante and Kyle behind.

Quietly shouldering his rifle onto his back, Dante pulled out a 9mm Beretta with a matte black cylinder attached to the barrel. A muffled "thump, thump" coughed out with a more distinct "thump" as Dante's reward. The other man had only enough time to turn towards Kyle, who's suppressed M14 had him in the sights. Another thump came out and the second man dropped like a bag of potatoes.

The odd pair quickly moved to breach the door, both on either side of the door, Dante on the left and the handle beside Kyle, who was against the wall on the right. Kyle whispered out urgently "That MoFo had purple eyes." Dante pointed to the door handle which Kyle quickly opened and shoved, allowing Dante access to the black hole. Into the unknown.


	2. Clear

_2 years ago_

* * *

"When you enter a warehouse stay low and have your rifle low." Those words were quiet words said by a seasoned marine, by the way the voice commanded undivided attention and obedience. He stood 5'7, his salt and peppered hair trimmed to a perfect jar head. From personal experience Dante knew that hair cut never grew more than what it looked like now and no less than a millimeter shorter when it was freshly cut. His youthful face lied to others about his true age of sixty eight. The man stood with his arms across his chest, his eyes flickering to the two young marines in front of him. The group of three marines stood in front of a diner that looked like it would belong in the sixties, yet the signs of age wearing on its surroundings and the general appearance.

Dante stood there answering with a chilled silence mirroring the old veteran in stance. Kyle was puffing the smoke from his cigarette from his mouth before he questioned the marines statement, "Why? That goes against what we were taught." The salty old marine gave a snort before firing back like an instructor defending his ego to a private. "Those milk runs are covered with black market materials. The last thing we need to worry about is innocent civilians. What's the true target are the materials inside the crates. Trust me boys, I was in intel in the cold war. We left good soldiers in Vietnam, and we are missing a hefty arsenal of nuclear weapons after the USSR collapse. Guess which one we give two shits about. Let me give you a hint, we have marines still dying in Vietnam and an increasing nuclear arsenal without even building them." The due were still clearly unconvinced.

Dante slowly rolled the cigarette in-between his fingers before answering like any outstanding grunt would say. "I'm just a lowly E-4, that means I just shoot and not think about it. I'm not a O-6 in the cold war in charge of gathering intel through counter espionage."

The old man smirked at the reply before patting the two marines on the shoulder and leading the charge into the diner, saying over his shoulder as he walked, "Dante you should have listened to me and taken my deal and went intel as an officer instead of going MARSOC. Who am I kidding, c'mon boys let's go get you some chow before Dante says I'm trying to persuade you to look where you're not supposed to look." Kyle and Dante fist bumped at finally making the old marine Colonel stop in mid rant then followed the marine in.

* * *

_Current_

"Clear!" "Clear!" The monotone words rang out across the warehouse. The building was simply a huge opened boxed room without any added doors. No doubt the architect did this to be able to store more black market supplies with easier access to move it. Kyle and Dante swept across the main room, a paintballers paradise. Dante steered a clear right from a crate broken into showing four AK-47s with a rack meant to hold five. He hated these milk runs. No matter how many times he was told differently, he couldn't help feeling they were waste of time and men. Soon they cleared the bottom main floor and were ascending the stairwell up into a box office that over looked the bottom floor.

Kyle and Dante stacked up against the door leading into the box office. Kyle turned to enter the room in a perfect formation for breaching the door. Right in front of the door, Dante moved and planted a steel toed boot right into the door and heard the telltale break of the door, the wood exploding inwardly, and Kyle on the side swiftly entering by turning his body into the entry way. After stepping no more than three feet Kyle stopped mid breach. Kyle slowly turned around to face Dante mouth wide open and slowly took a side step to the right, enough to clear the view for Dante to see human figures covered in green goo. That seemed to solidify there was nothing else in the room, but four more green gooed bodies staggered around the room. Dante couldn't help but cringe. They looked like green mummies in an office cubicle.

A weird high pitched noise was made almost like a squeal and then the sudden sound of resounding gunpowder. The little 5.56 no doubt being shot at full auto due to the thunder sounding out for a good few seconds before the echo sounded out. Dante didn't even glance at Kyle while he made a mad dash to the noise. Dante ran as quick as he could in full battle gear. He headed to the front of the warehouse, the opposite way from which the unlikely duo entered. The door wasn't more than 20ft away when Dante fired the hinges off of the door. Without confirmation that the door would give in, Dante used his body as a battering ram to take out the door. Throwing his left side into the door, a loud crack sounded out and Dante fell with the door to the ground seeing soldiers wearing tan BDU of four and one marine standing over something. Dante could only assume that was Gunny and rolled over in fear of friendly fire because two of the tanned unknown soldiers were firing close to Dante. Dante paid no heed, closing his eyes, enjoying the feeling of the rough sand getting into his uniform and trying to cut into his skin. His fall was followed by a 200 pound Marine Staff Sargent with the grace of a linebacker, almost tripping on Dante and kicking his spine causing Dante to wince in pain. Kyle turned and fired to the right of Dante, low at an abdominal shot for a human.

Dante quickly went into a firing stance at a prone form, barely able to get the butt of the rifle against his shoulder and peer down the sight of his scope. He barely made out the figure lying in wait with his read dot sight. In slow motion Dante fired at a small figure. It was as tall as a four year old and was hunched over. Its skin was a greyish hue and in the center of its chest a brighter orangish glow. Its limbs skinny and bony and lacked any physical form. Its belly looked like it held the mass of the being until Dante clarified his view on the creature seeing a huge gray head the size of a watermelon. Two large oval eyes emotionlessly stared back at Dante. Dante was taken aback and saw a green wrist mounted weapon slowly rise with its right arm. Dante's eyes widened and held down his trigger at the xeno aware of a purple mist coming from its head to his out stretched fingers and then towards Dante.


	3. Joy Ride Pt 1

A/N

Very quickly this story isn't meant to be angst. The story is what I perceive what XCOM truly was. In real life I can't imagine the UN having a group of highly trained special ops soldiers for solely aliens that train and don't participate on any missions. Instead I believe a Council has a more sinister illuminati type of style not like a UN. Dante and Kyle have hard lives I write it out like that because of the stereotype orphans make great soldiers. For those of you thinking cut the feels crap don't worry I plan on doing so with adding more characters with healthier back grounds. For now our only main characters aren't exactly A1 on mental health. btw in true XCOM fashion I encourage y'all to create XCOM characters to save me the effort of spending hours imagining a bad ass soldier when I have you guys. Please send questions and concerns and I'll answer via authors note just in case another reader months from now also has you're great question. Please if you do send any criticism be gentle I just got out of rehab so I have the sensitivity of a high school girl.

Also as a warning religion will play a vital role in this story. If you hate Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Shinto, Hinduism and whatever else is out there then do not fear! Religion I won't defend of offend hopefully simply use it in this story to channel future sub-plots. If you are a devout atheist who cannot bear the thought of religion then sorry man.

* * *

**Sylvia Nguyen**

**Location: Orlando, FL**

**Date: December, 4th, 1987**

**Age:38**

A little giggle erupted as Sylvia tickled her four year old son. A smile radiated off of her face as she stared lovingly at Dante. His eyes were filled to the brim of happiness with no knowledge of any pain just the infinite amount of love she showered upon her son. Sylvia enjoyed what joys motherhood had brought her finally. She would drop everything in order to protect her children she thought as she continued to tickle Dante and blow on his belly each action reaping a chorus of laughs and giggles. Sylvia looked at Dante lovingly before she thought of his brother Seth. He was Dante's senior by a ten year gap. He was the product of a night of drunken passion and abandoned by his father whom didn't even know he existed. His father was another vietnamese immigrant leaving vietnam with his family to America at the end of the war through sheer chance. Sylvia had no idea where he was now only that he was now a footnote in her life and non existent even on birth documents for his son Seth. Sylvia stopped tickling Dante now scoffing herself for wanting to fit in with the American kids. From wearing exactly what they wore to naming her children and to snorting coke.

Sylvia had a melt down her Senior year in high school when no one American asked her to prom. She was offered to go to a after party or a party for the outcasts that wouldn't go to prom whether by choice or by misfortune. There she lost her virginity and got addicted to the powder that still haunted her in her dreams. Images of actions she performed for her addictions. Seth forced to follow her homeless and dope sick Seth saw the side of life too many children were forced to see at a early age.

By sheer luck or chance she stumbled upon a old high school friend. Samuel his name changed to be Americanized after the war. Like Sylvia they wanted to be apart of the America they dreamed of. Both used to spend hours talking trying to erase they're accents and sound more American. Ironically Sylvia lost her most of her accent when she cared more about being in her culture than apart of the American culture.

They met at a church at a charity food line. Samuel recognized his old friend and Sylvia moved in and the rest was history. Sylvia was able to fight her addiction with a relapse after one year of sobriety, but continued to pick herself up and now was coming on almost nine years of sobriety. As fate had planned it her wedding with Samuel and her yearly anniversary of sobriety were on the same day. Sylvia was married with Sam for the past five years and for the nine years Sylvia lived with Sam they only recently physically touched one another after four years of life living together. They're fist kiss outside of the wedding was five years into their relationship.

Seth couldn't adapt well to the quick change. The school counselor placed him in special education classes for a few years slowly placing him in normal classes not due to his overabundance of intelligence, but because he would have anxiety attacks in classes with too much interaction. After being integrated with the normal classes Seth slowly became the class idiot being bullied frequently. Finally he stopped it all in a fight in middle school that was barely stopped in time when Seth took it too far and managed to use a stapler and almost staple the bullies eye off. Fortunately Sam's job as a engineer helped a lot in medical bills.

Seth was a time bomb people said he must have a mental disorder, but Sylvia believe it was her own demons from her past that now plagued Seth's future. Spiritually or not it didn't matter she just needed a explanation to cling onto. Sylvia just sat there in a daze unaware to Dante who now managed to get out of his mother's tickle trap and giggle as he made his grand escape. Going to his room to grab his favorite blanket because after tickle time mommy always had story time for Dante. Today was going to be the story of a man named Jesus. Sylvia on the other hand stared at her shaking hand. The shake that was the only outward sign of the desire to return to her addiction. Story time wasn't going to happen tonight Sylvia thought instead she was going to call Sam to come home immediately and insure she didn't do anything dumb... Then again if she just did the tiniest smidge no one would know and she would have the pleasure once again. It would be her little secret.

* * *

**Present Time: Jan, 4th, 2012**

Dante was in hell. There was no need to say anything else. Dante looked dumbly up at the Navy corpsman with the most blank expression he tried to hide to no avail. "So Mr. Bales did you change your last name because you hated your family?" A large groan came out of Dante's mouth. He absolutely hated Counseling. He did it before the service and sure as hell didn't need it now or after the service. Hell I used to teach a few classes Dante ranted in his head before saying with a pained voice of a tortured marine. "No I did it to not trace my family to me" The Navy man quickly said back in a quick reply no doubt out of pride. "So you did do it out of anger!" "No I did it to protect my family so no one could use them against me" was the reply Dante managed through his teeth.

First these dicks always wanted to be right never wrong secondly they needed one answer from you which as a sob story and instant recovery through their words. Yes there was a few without this narrow minded concept but they were few and far between. Heck he wasn't even suppose to be in this session. Heck it wasn't even a session they were sitting in the humvee Dante driving still allowed despite his complete lack of any driving experience outside of operation Eldest then again he drove a lot better than Kyle who had taken any driving course available to a high schooler.

Fortunately Kyle was in the back of the humvee with another vanilla marine whom was none other than his old high school sweetheart whom he never dated out of fear of rejection. Fortunately for Kyle everyone in their high school assumed they were together for the four years they were there because they were always together at least compared to everyone else Kyle hung out with excluding Dante. Taylor Black was a petite 5'7 girl who looked more like the classmate you flirted with than the marine she was. She had long black hair with blue eyes and extremely pale skin. She and Kyle were separated when they went MARSOC two years back opting social circles for the comfort only a bar could produce.

Another MARSOC marine was on the fifty cal whom Kyle and Dante had never met. They quickly found out it was because he was stationed in DC and also he just finished his training and somehow through a logistical mistake was placed on the general's defense team on his tour through the suck. He was a stock mean marine coming in the secondary size of a marine short and mean and tough as nails standing a fearsome 5'4. any other physical feature was hidden beneath BDU* or extra articles of clothing like a scarf, mask, tinted goggles and a helmet. His hands were tan just like every other marine who went out in this hell hole.

The doctor not doc specifically because Dante felt no respect to this grade A asshole had brown hair stood 5'6 and looked like a desk jockey. His name was simply Robertson to Dante unwilling to even commit his first name to memory. When they first met this doctor bragged about hunting deer and other redneckery things that didn't concern or amaze Dante at all. Once he found out Dante attended the infamous operation Eldest the counseling session began.

"Do you ever consider killing someone?" Robertson asked. Then the battle stress hit Dante like a train. "How about you stow it you fucking ass hole! I'm a soldier! The only difference between me and a serial killer is I get paid to stalk kill and torture people! So how about you shut up before the general has another unsolvable case on his hands! What you're out in the field and inspect us? Your not on the line committing crimes to keep your pencil pushing ass in that leather chair! Christ leave me alone you cause the mental damage! I just need to talk about it over a bottle of beer not a interrogation christ!." Kyle easily picked out Dante's tone. A tone that was only heard by Kyle twice and yes he kept count because usually those memories ended with a lot of bad feelings for everyone. It was the tone of anger which Dante never used normally always frustrated but never angry.

"I'm a christian and take those remarks about Jesus christ offensively..." was the doctors quiet reply before Dante erupted and screamed out "It's because the kids I killed in that god forsaken operation that you have the right to say that! Screw you and go die please in fact" Dante stopped the humvee fortunately the last humvee in the four humvee convoy. Once the humvee stopped Dante pulled out his pistol and aimed it at the doctors head. "I'm going to kill you and save me the trouble of your bull shit"

* * *

Story notes:

BDU: Battle Dress Uniform

Operation Eldest: A operation in which 16 MARSOC marines participated in with multiple other marine fire teams participated in to destroy a terrorist cell in a city. of the first 4 fire teams that went in only Fire team Angel managed to survive until evac only 3 MARSOC marines survived after a controversial hostage taking. Only those in the special operations field have heard of this mission due to the media's sensitivity to failed operations.

Fire team: a group of four soldiers for tactical flexibility a squad is usually formed by two or three fire teams

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A/N

It's 2AM for me I started writing at 1AM I'm taking a break real quick expect at least a chapter more today the rest will be revealed and what not any ways nighty night and what not


End file.
